Kerbal Space Program Launches Patch 1.1

One thing which makes Kerbal Space Program [official site] different from most, if not all, other space games is failure. In the short bursts I’ve played our Best Space Game of 2015, I’ve not saved the world or fought off alien invasions; I’ve struggled to assemble the most basic of rocket ships and have fumbled more take offs than I care to admit. My fleeting moments of success, though, have been great fun. The game’s “Turbo Charged” 1.1 update introduces a range of new features aimed to help amateurs like myself along, while also upping the challenge for those space veterans among us.

By making the jump to Unity 5, Kerbal’s latest patch offers a “large boost in performance”, and adds a new user interface that’s been written from the ground up. The new KSPedia will act as the go-to manual for just about everything in the game, so say developers Squad, which will include everything from basic explanations of building and flying, to more advanced concepts such as docking, “in-situ resource utilisation”, and basically everything you need to know about planning a successful interplanetary mission. Which for me is, ahem, everything.

The update also extends the game’s tutorials which now cover everything from basic and advanced construction and flight, to docking and landing on Mun. Maybe you want to learn how to nail the perfect gravity turn, or use a spaceplane to reenter the atmosphere before landing back at the Kerbal Space Center? Perhaps you’re keen to discover the best way return a craft from Duna without a heat shield, or how to orbit Kerbin and land the Eagle? Squad are confident the new tutorials will help you with all of that. But then they’ve not seen me in the cockpit.

Of the update, the developers said:

“After almost a year of hard work our major update is finally here! In the package you’ll find a large boost in performance due to the upgrade to the Unity 5 game engine, 64 bit binaries for Windows and OSX that will help you mod the game to ridiculous lengths and the brand new KSPedia reference guide for all the information you need to play the game!”

Kerbal Space Program’s 1.1 update is available now on the KSP Store and Steam, and will “soon be available on other third party platforms”. Full patch notes can be found over here.